Who pinched a Chorlton pub?

Now when you have spent a decade and a half crawling over Chorlton’s past it is always nice to find something new, and something you didn’t know.

The mystery Holly Bush Inn, 1900

So yesterday while searching for an image of a lost pub on Market Street in town I came across two paintings of a Chorlton pub called the Holly Bush Inn.

Both were by painted our local artist J Montgomery and are dated 1900 and 1967.*

J. Montgomery is an an artist I know well and there are heaps of his paintings in Manchester Library’s Image Collectoion.  

Most were painted from picture postcards which have now been lost and so are themselves a unique record of Chorlton’s past.

Until that is this one, which does not appear in any historical record for the 19th into the 20th century.

I wondered if he had confused Chorlton cum Hardy with Chorlton on Medlock but a check of the pubs listed in The Old Pubs of Hulme and Chorlton on Medlock by Bob Potts drew a blank.**

The mystery Holly Bush Inn, 1967

And anyway Mr. Montgomery knew his Chorlton.  

It might however been mis catalogued, but I doubt that too.

So, it seems a mystery.  

It could have been one of those short lived beer shops which sprang up and vanished leaving little trace.   

One such doble fronted “superior” establishment was run by Mrs Leach which was the scene of a dreadful stabbing in 1847. 

The press coverage of the time never offered up a name for the beer shop but it was roughly on the site of the modern Cromar on Manchester Road.

But it had long gone when Montgomery painted his picture from a1900 picture postcard and certainly would have been long forgotten when he reprised the subject in 1967.

And here we do have to be careful because in labelling his paintings he sometimes wrote the date of the postcard and at other times the date of when he created the image.

That said I could be wrong and there may once have been a Holly Bush Inn, which may have been pinched or converted into any one of a number of different uses.

We shall see.

Location; sometime and place in Chorlton

Pictures; The Holly Bush Inn, 1900, m49891, and 1967, m80053, J Montgomery, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass

*J. Montgomery, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search?q=Montgomery

**The Old Pubs of Hulme and Chorlton on Medlock by Bob Potts, 1997

The pub sign …. a question …. and an invite to a heap of stories …. July 25th in the Horse and Jockey at 8pm

Your starter is to suggest a date when this pub sign hung outside the Horse and Jockey.

Who can date the sign?

It now has pride of place in the newly redecorated pub and the manager Iain hopes it will spark a memory.

The restaurant, 2024

As will the stories which will  feature during the launch of our new book The Horse and Jockey in the series Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors, Andrew Simpson, and Peter Topping, 2024.

The sign was discovered upstairs in a corner of one of the store rooms.

Nor is that the only forgotten secret to reappear because back in 2010 a chimney breast and an internal wattle and daub wall were uncovered which will have not seen the light of day for at least two centuries.

The rediscovered chimney, 2024

To these forgotten bits of the Jockey’s past can be added a varied collection of stories from Samuel Wilton who stole the village green from the community in the early 19th century to the inquest held in the pub to investigate the murder of Francis Deaken in 1847.

Outside the Jockey circa 1900

And added to these is the arrest of young Samuel Warburton at 7 am in the morning outside the pub having a pint and recovering from his participation in an illegal prize fight out on the meadows in the July of the following year**.

I could go on but for the details of these and other stories you will have to buy the book which will be on sale on the night.

The launch will follow our earlier ones and along with a brief few words from the authors we are hoping for performances from two Manchester poets, along with the usual mix of good conversation.

The event is free, is always fun and of course allows you to explore the newly redecorated pub and relax with a drink.

Leaving me just to thank Iain and his assistant Anna for being our hosts on the night.

You can order the book at www.pubbooks.co.uk email or the old-fashioned way on 07521 557888 or from Chorlton Bookshop

Location; The Horse and Jockey

Pictures; The Horse and Jockey, 2024 from the collection of Andrew Simpson and in 1900, courtesy of Caroline Willetts

Every Chorlton pub should have its own book ……..

It’s a given that all our pubs have a rich history with heaps of stories and so the new book on the Horse & Jockey* is the first in the series which will feature all eight Chorlton pubs and the lost ones.

The Horse & Jockey, 2023

The Horse & Jockey looks the part of a rural pub, with its stone floors, low ceilings, interesting spaces, and distinctive Tudor frontage.

It occupies a building which was already into its second decade when Henry V111 walked up the aisle with Anne Boleyn, but appearances can be deceptive.

It didn’t become a pub until 1793, consisted of just four small rooms either side of the main door and didn’t acquire its black and white timber “look” until sometime in the early 20th century.

Various suggestions have been offered up for exactly when the building was constructed but it would have been some time at the start of the 1500s.

Back then it consisted of four individual cottages and may originally have been made with wattle and daub walls which were later replaced with brick.  

The Horse & Jockey, circa 1900

Our book tells the story of the building from its construction, through to its growth into the pub we know today, and along the way will pick out the arrest of a celebrated prize fighter, the inquest into an awful murder and those "gentlemen" who played bowls on the green behind the pub.

To these we have added Samuel Wilton’s dastardly theft of the village green, traditional rural pastimes, some popular myths and that almost winning Jockey football team from the 1970s.

Along with the stories from Andrew Simpson there are seven original paintings by Peter Topping and a large selection of maps and photographs spanning the last two centuries.

All for the price of a pint.

The book is available from Chorlton Bookshop, Iain Cartwright at the Horse and Jockey and from us at www.pubbooks.co.uk

Location; The Horse & Jockey, the Inn on Green, Chorlton

Pictures; cover of Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors The Horse & Jockey, designed by Peter Topping, The Horse & Jockey, 2023, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, and in 1900 courtesy of Carolyn Willitts

*Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors The Horse & Jockey, Andrew Simpson & Peter Topping, 2024

A pub, an inscription, and the start of a detective story …… with a confession

Now, I am intrigued by the discovery at the Bowling Green Hotel of an inscription which looks to have the date 1698 carved into it.

The inscription, 2020

The story was  posted this week, with the speculation of a link between that 17th century inscription and the bowling green, coupled with an appeal to crowd fund for improvements to the green.

It is a fascinating find and could push the story of the site back a century from the conventional assumption that the first pub was opened in the1780s and takes us back to what might have been the first dwelling on the site.

According Thomas Ellwood who wrote a series of articles on the history of Chorlton-cum-Hardy which were published in the winter of 1885 and the spring of the following year, “The oldest inn in the centre of the village  is the Bowling Green Hotel, adjoining the old church – the usual situation for a village public house.

The old Bowling Green Hotel. date unknown

Formerly there stood here one of those ancient wood and plaster dwellings.

The present house was erected about a century ago.  It was first a farmhouse and hostelry combined and belonged to the Egertons of Tatton, but is now owned by Mr. Wm Roberts, the well-known brewer.

Edward Mason was the person who obtained the first licensee of the house, the business afterwards being continued by his son Edward, who was also a land surveyor.  The tenants following were George Whitelegge, William Partington, Charles Chambers,  A. P. Philips, and Edward Richards.  The tenant at present is James English.  There is a bowling-green connected to this inn.

A pond formerly existed on the plot of land bounded by the green behind, and the Chorlton brook, and had a small island in the centre.  This was let during the tenancy of Edward Mason, jun to a gentleman for fishing, but on the making of the main sewer through the village by Lord Egerton, it was drained and filled up.”

Now, Ellwood’s account is fascinating, not least because he drew on the memories of those who had lived in the township all their lives, and would in turn have called up the memories of their parents and grandparents, which might well take us back to the time King George lost the American colonies.

The old Bowling Green Hotel, date unknown

To these we can add the records from the Rate Books which list the owners, and the occupants of our building, starting with the earliest surviving entry which was for 1844.  The records confirm Mr. Ellwood chronology of owners and landlords and offers updates for when they took over the pub.

But what also comes out from those records, is that the first reference to a bowling green only comes in 1862, along with the first refence in the books to the name the Bowling Green Hotel which appears twelve years later.

Of course, history is messy, and the records as ever throw up conflicting evidence.

So, while both the Tithe map of 1845 and the OS map of 1854, show the pond there is no indication of a bowling green. That said the earlier map does list the pub as the Bowling Green Inn, which would suggest that there was indeed a bowling green to the east of old pub.

Ken playing the green, 1979

Frustratingly Mr. Elwood did not elaborate on the bowling green, although he did go into some detail on the green associated with the Horse and Jockey and a later one on the corner of Cross Road and High Lane, recording that “Bowling has always been popular in Chorlton, the well conducted greens being attended solely for healthy exercise and recreation”.

Adding “The village can boast of no fewer than six bowling greens, three in connection with the hotels, and three maintained by subscription. ……… The game may be indulged in by the public at the Lloyd’s Hotel, the Bowling Green Hotel and the old inn at Jackson’s Boat”, [with] another bowling green connected with the Chorlton Reading Rooms, [Beech Road] where the working men of the village assemble”.***

At which point I was tempted arrogantly to conclude that the Bowling Green Hotel’s link to a very old bowling green was unlikely, but history may prove me wrong.  John Lloyd in his book on the history of Chorlton-cum-Hardy commented that “the reputed date of the Bowling Green  Inn is 1693”which comes close to our inscription.****

To which can be added the assertion that “Crown green bowling of a sort is actually recorded in 1600 being played at the Bowling Green Hotel in Chorlton”.*****

Looking towards the Bowling Green, date unknown

Now that reference to 1600 will have to be followed up, but intriguingly, Olive Donohue, who is the secretary of the Chorlton Bowling Club has other sources which show a connection back to the 17th century.

All of which means that this story may have plenty more surprises to come, and along the way, confirm that simple observation that you should never make definitive assumptions about events in the past because the evidence can leap out of the shadows and bite you on the bum.

In the meantime I will finish with that crowd funding appeal, from the club’s Facebook site, "It’s our intention to conduct a crowdfunding campaign ahead of the start of next season (2021), but in the meantime here’s our banking details, in case anyone feels like making a donation. The green itself is in urgent need of some TLC, and grass seed, fertilizer, new sprinklers, etc. can be quite costly".******

Location; Chorlton

The new Bowling Green, 1978

Pictures; The old Bowling Green Hotel, date unknown, from the collections of Allan Brown, Tony Walker,and the Lloyd Collection and Ken playing the green in 1979

*Elwood, Thomas, Inns, Chapter 23, The History of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, April 17th, 1886, South Manchester Gazette.

**George Whitelegg[e] 1841-1859, William Partington, 1859, 1868, Charles Chambers, 1872-3, Edward Richards 1874-1884, James England, 1884, owners, Egertons up to 1859, William & Elizabeth Partington, 1859, Charles Chambers 1872, William Roberts 1874

***Elwood, Thomas, Bowling Greens Chapter 26, The History of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, May 17th, 1886, South Manchester Gazette.

****Lloyd John, The Township of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, 1972, page 60

*****Cheshire County Bowling Association, Centenary Souvenir Booklet, 1910-2010, Cheshire County Bowling Association

****** Bowling Green Hotel Bowling Club, Crowd Funding Appeal, Bank sort code: 20 26 20 (Barclays, Chorlton) Account no: 6019 2988